


Gathering the Pieces

by ScissorsParchment



Series: Gathering the Pieces [2]
Category: Transformers (Unicron Trilogy), Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Cybertron
Genre: M/M, More characters to be added, mgss ship will come in Ch3
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2019-07-08
Packaged: 2020-06-09 21:26:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19484356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScissorsParchment/pseuds/ScissorsParchment
Summary: Post-Cybertron, setting that Cybertron is the direct sequel to Armada and Energon. The former Decepticon SIC returned to Kaon and made peace with the Autobots. Bearing the suspect of his former enemies, misunderstandings of his own kind, and his weakened small frame with severe sequelae, he strived for rebuilding a prosperous planet together with the new leader of Cybertron, with whom he developed a belated relationship. Meanwhile, he was chased by the worst of his past and an even larger conspiracy behind it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a translation of my work in Chinese. The fic in original language is [here](http://aprilapplez.lofter.com/post/1d292132_12b6ea155).  
> It has a prequel ["Loveless"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16485989).  
> Special thanks to [Christie_Cavedish](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Christie_Cavedish) and [eveningstar16](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eveningstar16/pseuds/eveningstar16) for your great inspirations to this work!  
>   
> Units of time:  
> Nanoklik = Cybertronian second  
> Klik = Cybertronian minute  
> Joor = Cybertronian hour  
> Solar cycle = Cybertronian day  
> Stellar cycle = Cybertronian year

Oil houses were busy at midnight, and this one in the black market was no exception.

The hall of the oil house was teemed with speculators waiting for business. They peeked at every customer who came in; to facilitate them to do so, the illumination in the hall was not really dark, and it was even brighter near the porch. Two filers attracted their attention as soon as they entered the hall.

Those were two small fighter jets, one of them in blue and silver-grey, with well-proportioned build and a jaunty gait. The other was in red, dark blue and silver, slightly taller than his partner but slimmer. In the middle of their wings imprinted purple insignias in the shape of a turbofox face.

Two Decepticons.

Once on the planet Cybertron, the Decepticons started a great civil war and fought the Autobots for millennia. But the faction had waned since Megatron, their leader, was killed fighting Unicron over twenty stellar cycles ago. In the next two decades, Megatron resurrected twice and made use of the remains of Unicron and Unicron Sigularity, the black holes formed by the collapse of the energon sun that had trapped Unicron, trying to build them into galaxy-conquering weapons. His both attempts had failed, however, and he had been finally destroyed by the Autobots.

The Autobots and the neutrals reestablished a government after the war. The Decepticons, though basically stuck in their city-state of origin Kaon, had managed to go out from time to time for all kinds of illegal activities. This had troubled the surrounding city-states a lot until a few months ago, when the former Decepticon Second-in-Command ended his exile, returned to Kaon and signed a peace agreement with the new Cybertronian government. Since then Kaon had been under the new government’s administration, and there had been much fewer Decepticons wandering outside Kaon. It was said to prevent the scum of the Decepticons from committing more crimes, now no mech could leave Kaon without holding a special permission issued by the its government.

Thus seeing Decepticons here was kind of rare, yet no big deal anyway, thinking that the oil house was an underground market. But still, many pairs of optics kept following the two jets even after they took seats near the wall.

Because these two, especially the tricolor one, looked just gorgeous.

His paint gleamed and outlined his sharp, but streamline physique, his wings gently folded on his back, slightly trembling as if he was going to flutter and soar high the next nanoklik. His face, even could not be very clearly seen by the mechs in the hall, already made them wonder why a solider should have an appearance of such delicacy.

The tricolor jet glanced at the electronic menu by his side on the table, and placed his order after only scanning the first page. The blue one scrolled through the menu, ordered, and leaned towards the tricolor jet.

“Midgrade – boss, you are really boring.”

“Thundercracker, we’re going to Iacon next morning. If there’s a slightest whiff of high grade on your plate when we arrive at the space bridge, I’ll go without you.”

The tricolor jet answered in a low and husky voice, so husky as if he smoked ten cygars a day. He glanced at Thundercracker’s digital ordering pad and found a high grade cocktail on it. Lucky you, he thought, I will throw you out onto the street if you dare order a full mug of high grade.

Their drinks and snack were served in kliks. Thundercracker ordered chocolate-coated screw nuts apart from his cocktail. The tricolor jet ordered nothing else and simply sipped his midgrade.

“Try one, boss.” Thundercracker said as he threw a screw nut into his mouth, “you are supposed to come here to relax! Chocolate improves your mood.”

Are you sure this research result on organic beings applies to us? The tricolor jet thought silently and picked up his mug from the table again.

“Grasp the time to enjoy it. We may not be able to finish even a midgrade.”

“What -”

Thundercracker shut his mouth. He too saw several large mechs in thick fight armors coming towards them.

Out of these mechs, those on the sides had similar paintjobs, suggesting that they were in a certain organization. The one in the center approached the table, staring at the tricolor jet.

“You know who’s in charge here, hottie?” He asked after reaching the front of the tricolor jet, looking down from his above.

Thundercracker knew right away that this mech was a local gang leader or something. Sure, one needed to pay protection fee to guys like this if he wanted to stay in their turf. But they had been in the oil house for barely ten kliks, so it was not like the local villains were feeling ignored and coming to make trouble.

And seeing the gang leader’s berthroom optics on the tricolor jet, Thundercracker could figure it out even with his cooling fins why this mech came to them.

To other guests in the hall, this gang leader might seem too audacious. However their influence had declined, Decepticons were experienced warriors. These two jets might even have relatively high ranks if they had left Karon legally with government permissions. Perhaps the gang leader was blinded by his lust. This was understandable, as most mechs in this oil house were not law-abiding. Not many of them would refuse to have their finger on the tricolour jet’s most slender waist that could be grabbed by a big mech with a single servo.

The tricolor stood up and looked up at the mech with his gleaming amethystine optics. Then he curled his thin lips and smiled.

The gang leader grinned back, his spark almost melted at the sight. But before his grin had gone, he suddenly tripped sideways and fell flat on his face.

His minions beside him gazing in surprise at the “hottie” in front of them who had just kicked over their leader with a lightning speed. The tricolour jet took his ped back as if nothing had happened, his left servo still holding the mug, his midgrade spilled out only a few drops.

“Slag!”

The gang leader roared as he rose to his peds and waved to his mechs to pounce on both jets. Thundercracker jumped up to dodge the attack, while the tricolor jet swiftly passed over the goons with several feints and dashed straight to their leader. The mug cracked in his servo.

The fight suddenly stopped after the noise of a few more punching and kicking. Others in the hall looked with astonishment at the gang leader, who was still in the posture of bending over after an attack and dared not move. The tricolor jet held a broken glass from the mug over his head, with its tip firmly pressing against an optic of the other mech.

The goons froze as well. Their leader would have an optic scrapped as long as the broken glass forced a poke.

“No!”

Thundercracker shouted abruptly from behind the tricolor jet.

“Boss, don’t do this!” His voice cracked. “you know you can’t do this.”

Flames flashed through his optics, the tricolor jet dropped the piece of glass and jumped aside. Before the surrounding mechs could react, he transformed, took several consecutive side-turns to make his way out of their encirclement and evade all the others in the hall, made a final sharp turn around the porch of the oil house and stormed out. Thundercracker shook off the gang members, sprinted to the front desk of the oil house and dropped enough cash to pay the bill and compensate for half a dozen mugs. Then he transformed and flew out following his officer.

The tumult in the hall grew louder, until a tipster among them realized who the tricolor jet was:

“... Starscream!”

The hall turned silent. The name he just called out belonged to the former Decepticon SIC who had just returned to Kaon.

Another guest challenged this idea. “The central government wanted him for years and offered his video files. In the videos he was a relatively large fighter jet, far from this small.”

“It’s said that he has been modified into a small jet frame when he returned to Kaon. Maybe because the government felt threatened by his power in his past large frame, so they forced him for the modification.” The tipster answered, “the small tricolor jet here just now is painted in the same color scheme as the Starscream on the wanted poster, isn’t him? Besides, the other blue and silver jet has a Seeker frame. Seekers are Decepticon elite soldiers and directly report to the air commander. So who else can get him call boss?”

No one answered him anymore. None of them wanted to fight the current de facto leader of Decepticons, even if he was turned into a small frame and stripped of all his built-in weapons. And it was that small jet who had just settled multiple gang members with ease. If it he had not been inexplicably stopped and rushed out on hearing the words of his subordinate, the gang leader would not end up with only losing an optic.

Starscream flew much faster than the civil speed limit. Thundercracker had to follow him through a dozen blocks before they reached the outskirts of the city. Then they stopped over a factory, landed the factory roof and transformed back to robot mode.

The Decepticon acting commander looked ahead silently. The sky was pitch dark, only the light from Luna 1 silhouetted himself and the flyer beside him.

They went to the oil house really to relax. Or to be exact, Thundercracker claimed that Starscream needed relax, and dragged him to the oil house in this city adjacent to Kaon the night before they went to Iacon for bimonthly meeting. They chose an oil house in the black market because legal oil houses might fear the Decepticons, maybe would not admit them at all. The defeated Decepticons were not allowed to own such a militarily threatening facility as a space bridge. Thus, if they did not want to fly halfway around Cybertron to Iacon, they had to come to this city and use the local government’s space bridge to reach the meeting venue.

The immediate reason that Thundercracker said his commander needed relax was a big argument between Cyclonus and Starscream joors before. The long-term reason was that Cyclonus was simply among the majority of Decepticons who did not understand Starscream’s approach to manage Kaon and cooperate with the Autobots.

Since Megatron was swallowed up by the energon sun over a decade ago, many Decepticons had lost their purpose and fled. Those remaining in Kaon were either loyal veterans, or decadents, villains and criminals who felt it hard to find a place elsewhere. So after the war, Kaon was still a notorious source of crime beyond control of the new central government and a serious threat to southern Cybertron. Starscream had been knocked into another dimension by Megatron years before, and as he emerged from the Fire Dimension, Optimus Prime tracked him down, told him what was happening in Kaon - though he completely expected it – and explained that was why they needed Starscream.

Starscream accepts the terms of the Autobots, agreeing to step out of the Fire Dimension and bring Karon under the control of the new government, and even to accept his frame modification. The reason he was required to have his frame modified was just as the tipster in the oil house guessed.

He had to accept these because even he could continue to hide in the Fire Dimension and the Autobots could do nothing about it, he had no soldiers or resources there anyway. Unlike his crazy former leader, Starscream did not think he could conquer the universe or accomplish anything without followers and just relying on remains of an evil god, a black hole, or likewise.

Certainly he accepted those terms not merely for a comeback. But he refused to acknowledge all his purposes.

Thanks to the Decepticons’ compliance to the command chain and his own reputation in the army, Starscream took over Kaon in a relatively smooth way. But then things turned difficult. For the sake of peace and sustainable livelihood, he tolerated the exclusion and spite of other city-states, prohibited the Decepticons from doing evil outside Kaon, fought crimes inside the city, and tried to encourage legitimate production. But how could the Decepticons with constituents as said above listen to him so easily? He had to regulate them with coercive measures, which, of course, caused a lot of complaints. Even the loyal veterans who also hoped to reduce those illegal activities were somewhat dissatisfied with his concessions to the Autobots. Many of them even questioned if he had become a puppet of the Autobots to suppress the Decepticons.

Those was what Cyclonus had accused him of joors ago. The quarrel was actually more like a one-sided scolding by Cyclonus. Cyclonus and Demolishor were elite warriors older than him, but the former had got a spiritual dependence on Megatron since he was rebuilt by the warlord, and thus went mad after Megatron’s death. It took Demolishor tremendous efforts to bring Cyclonus back to his senses, yet he was still more violent than before. Starscream was not the good-tempered or tolerant type, but what could he do when scolded by his mentally unstable old comrade, who was an innocent victim of the warlord’s mind control?

Even the most understanding and supportive Demolishor expressed his disappointment during that quarrel, saying that Cyclonus was right and their leaders had become so unpredictable.

“Perhaps you are no longer the warm-sparked Starscream who fought bravely for the Decepticon cause and died admonishing Lord Megatron to save the Earth.” Said the laser tank.

My spark has been cold as iron for a long time, Starscream thought. He spoke finally.

“Thundercracker, the oil house you found seemed to welcome us too much.”

“I’m sorry, boss, I didn’t know they were so... vulgar and stupid.” Thundercracker replied, “But if we need to fight again, let me --”

“I’m not that vulnerable.” Starscream interrupted him. “Things can go wrong only when my combat protocol is highly activated. My protocol needed not that level of activation at all to deal with those gangsters in the oil house.”

“I know you’d punch me if I say that, but I’m really afraid of what might happen!” The blue and silver Seeker argued, “you know how dangerous it is...”

He stopped as he saw Starscream slightly lower his head, his optics dimmed, and his servos clenched on his sides.

The frame modification did not only reduced Starscream’s combat power by over a half. His previous large frame created in the energon sun had a lot of built-in weapons of mass destruction, and the organization of its internal wires and organs was entirely different from standard aircrafts. Now that he had built-in weapons removed and his frame shrunk so much, to remain his basic functioning, his internal structure and wires had to be heavily re-engineered, especially his circulatory and nervous systems. This led to severe sequelae, including physical pain episodes now and then, which was relatively easy to tolerate and will gradually alleviate. Worse still, once he highly activated his combat protocol and stroke with full might, the danger worried by Thundercracker would really take place…

The Decepticon air commander, the Seeker who had challenged Primus, could hardly fight now. How could he such face weakness and powerlessness of his own?

“I didn’t mean that!” Thundercracker explained anxiously, “I mean, we’re all counting on you now. We can’t afford to lose a single piece of your armor!”

Starscream sighed low, seeing that the young soldier was trying to comfort his damaged self-esteem.

“I know, TC.” he answered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *The term Seeker does not appear in Unicorn Trilogy cartoons, but only its Comic Series. Just borrow it here.
> 
> Starscream in Cybertron Cartoon, from TFRaw:  
> 
> 
> Body modified Starscream (Chibi) in this fic, my own painting:  
> 
> 
> Thundercracker, from TFWiki:  
> 


	2. Chapter 2

As the capital of Cybertron, Iacon was the best rebuilt city after the war. Not badly damaged in the Unicron Singularity incident a few years ago, it was now fully restored to its former glory. In its downtown area, towering buildings surrounded the library, research institutes, central park and government buildings, in the center of which was the Cybertronian headquarter.

Inside the headquarter building was going on the bimonthly "governors' meeting", where all the city-state leaders, or "governors", came to discuss central and local policies. The dozens of city-states making up Cybertron had recognized the leadership of the new central government, but retained some autonomy.

Starscream sat in the furthest seat of the meeting hall, opposite to the leader of Cybertron in the middle. The governors' seats were arranged according to the geographical locations of city-states, and Kaon was on the southernmost of the planet, furthest from Iacon.

Today's meeting was peaceful, and no one took the opportunity to target the Decepticons when several issues involving Kaon were discussed. But this was the third time Starscream attended the governors' meeting. He had been treated much less friendly during his first attendance: several governors had begun to taunt him at the first sight of him, mocking whether he, after being forced into the small, thin modified armors, could stir up trouble again. They further oppress Kaon during the meeting in the negotiation of multiple policies such as the resource allocation for post-war reconstruction. Other governors kept silent due to either the dread of the Decepticons' past rampage, the hatred to them, or the fear of being branded their conspirators. Almost no one had stood up and said to be fair.

Starscream, in his small, thin armors, had debated with the hostile governors for dozens of kliks until finally getting largely fair resource allocation to Kaon. The debate made all the city-states realize that if the Decepticons were not treated as peaceful citizens which they had turned into, neither would them hesitate to once more fight the entire planet.

After the meeting, Starscream walked out of the hall as he was pinged by a comm. message from the leader of Cybertron:

:: Starscream, please come to room F2237 in the defense center in ten kliks for the military meeting. ::

Starscream did not expect that. Unlike its all-hands session for civilian affairs, the military session of the governor's meeting was usually reserved for only the leaders of city-states involved in the agenda, most often those with strong military forces or the planet's key fortresses. Kaon was exactly such a city-state in terms of military status, but as a vanquished faction, the Decepticons had their military activities strictly surveilled and restricted, so of course they were not to attend the military meeting.

Yet since he was arranged to attend the meeting this time, Starscream went to the defense center as told. At the door of room F2237, he swiped his CNA signature, and sure enough, his access was turned on. The situation in the meeting room again was beyond his expectation.

Besides the city-state leaders who were supposed to be in the meeting, there were also leaders or mech-in-charge of all the colonies of Cybertron: Scourge of the Jungle Planet, Hot Shot of Velocitron, Crosswise of Earth, and the new leader of Gigantion over twice the height of an average Cybertronian even in his special seat. They were explaining to others that they had no idea either why they were invited to Cybertron for this meeting.

The four mechs stopped as they spotted Starscream come in. It was the first time they saw him after the war.

"Starscream, long time no see."

It was Hot Shot who made the salutation. Young and handsome as he was, he had been an experienced soldier. Although he was among the Prime's team the most directly confronting Starscream in the battle for the Omega Lock over two years ago, he was now more friendly than most others to Starscream. That was probably because he also participated in the battle for the Minicons two decades ago, where he witnessed Starscream's brief corporations with the Autobots as well as his self-scarification to bring about the Autobot-Decepticon union fighting against Unicron.

Hot Shot looked at Starscream's new frame but said nothing, it seemed that he had heard about his forced frame modification. He was not the sarcastic type. "So you're now the leader of the Decepticons? I am glad you choose to return to peace."

"Glad to see you, Hot Shot." Starscream answered. "Peace is the right choice. But please call me the acting commander, or second-in-command, whichever you like."

Hot Shot tilted its head. "All right. But why?" He got a bit confused why Starscream corrected him. Without Megatron, is seemed natural for his former SIC to take over the leadership.

"Leadership is not yet on our agenda when Kaon has so much to be rebuilt." Starscream said. Not hoping to appear unfriendly, he brought a smile to his lips, "later we will elect a formal leader."

The door of the meeting room opened again. The attendees turned quiet when they saw the mech coming in.

That was a large transport aircraft, with green and white paint. His face was fully covered by a red visor and a white battlemask, which did not really make him grim, but anyway drew back a little distance from the others.

The former Autobot SIC, post-war leader of Cybertron, Jetfire.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting." Jetfire shook servos one by one with the guests just coming from the colonial planets, and took a glance to Starscream without trace for half a nanokilk. Then he spoke to all in the meeting room.

"Today I invite you here for a potential major threat, a common threat to all the planets where Transformers live."

Seeing the questioning optics of the attendees, he stated straightly. "Ten solar cycles ago, our interplanetary security system detected a residual energy radiation that seemed to be from Unicron."

The atmosphere suddenly got tense, and the attendees gave no response except for a few low exclamations. Unicron had threatened to destroy Cybertron for three times in the past two decades. After in the last time the black hole he created was sealed, everyone thought his threat was finally over, but now...

On the main screen in the room, a blip lit up on the space map, showing the direction of the radiation source detected. Also displayed on the map were other observation figures.

"The intensity of the radiation had been varying rapidly and irregularly since its appearance. It was on and off for a couple of solar cycles, then it disappeared completely. The observation data is insufficient to determine our distance to the radiation source, but the worst estimate is within a light year." Jetfire said. Within a light year meant the radiation source would be closer than any star to Cybertron other than its main star. "We must be on our guard, and you should know better than I what contingency arrangements are to be made at the local fortresses under your governance. Also, the defense center will distribute the program and device to monitor Unicron's signal to you. Please keep monitoring the radiation. If we can catch its recurrence, especially from other planets, then we may use the observations to triangulate and work out the location of the radiation source."

The governors nodded or responded, indicating that they understood the arrangement, but in low and sparse voices. Most of them seemed to be preoccupied with the severity of the threat.

Scourge turned his head to them and clenched his fists.

"I say, are you afraid of Unicron, or - Megatron? Whichever of them, we have beaten it for times. Now we can beat it once more!"

The crowd became even more silent: Scourge's words struck the right note. In its three threats to annihilate Cybertron, Unicron was already near-death after the first threat. Who continued to threaten the planet using Unicron's body was the former leader of the Decepticons who had been twice resurrected and defeated and supposed to have disappeared forever. Megatron had become such a nightmare that many Cybertronians even dared not mention his name, though a brave and straightforward warrior like Scourge would not care. Megatron had absorbed Unicron's power for times and had been assimilated by it, so except for whatever left for the Unicron Singularity, he was the one most likely to give out Unicron's signal. If he did have come back...

"Yes, last time we five planets fought on our own and united only towards the end of the battle. Now we are united and have our strength doubled from the beginning. Then why should we fear of our old enemies that we have defeated before?" Hot Shot said.

There began some echoes in the crowd. Suddenly another governor asked:

"If it was indeed him, would the Decepticons follow him again?"

A hush fell over the crowd. Some attendees were peeking at Starscream since Jetfire began to explain the situation, and now everyone's sights concentrated on him.

Not a few mechs wanted to ask this question. If the Decepticons did once again serve the resurrected warlord, they would undoubtedly be back to the public enemy of Cybertron. Or if others simply suspected enough that they would do so, it could destroy the nascent peace between them and the rest of the planet.

Starscream was dead calm on the verge of breaking out s fight. He had been thinking how to deal with this situation as soon as Jetfire announced the detection of Unicron's radiation.

"You can rest easy on that," he answered flatly, "the Decepticons want to get rid of him at least as much as you do. At the end of the battle for the Omega Lock, the Decepticons who had once followed him, the descendants of Decepticons on Earth, and I were all against him. None would follow a leader who cares only about himself rather than his people -- Optimus Prime has a point, I have to say."

"It's true. At the end all the Decepticons left Megatron and went to help push the Jungle Planet back into orbit." Scourge explained, seeing some governors appear confused due to not knowing about the situation on the battlefield then.

"And he hated traitors the most. So we will only take your side against him, if only for our own survival." Starscream continued.

There was little more for others to ask, whether they believed him or not. 

"Don't be so nervous. It's just one of our guesses." Jetfire shifted the subject, "At the moment, our scientists still think the radiation are most likely from previously undiscovered debris of Unicron's body, or even other space objects with very similar energy signals. It would be best if it is a false alarm, but we have to plan for the worse. I didn't call anyone of you until today to make it looks just a regular topic for the military meeting. Please continue keeping this matter strictly confidential before a conclusion can be drawn to the radiation." Of course, if the news spread, the public could panic and the safety of Cybertron could be further endangered.

The meeting was over. Starscream, with a heavy spark, was just about to exit the meeting room when he again received Jetfire's comm. message asking him to stay. He had to watch the other attendees leave until he and Jetfire were alone in the room.

Jetfire came up to him, stooping slightly to make himself look less oppressive. When he stood straight, Starscream's head was lower than the Autobot insignia on his chestplate.

"Are you free for dinner this evening?" He asked.

Starscream raised his chin, his optics flickered once, almost staring into the red visor of the other mech. Faced with the possible threat of Unicron and still thinking about this thing, he thought, it is really hard to say whether the leader of Cybertron was too serious, or not serious at all.

Surely he knew why Jetfire invited him. Jetfire already made the same invitation after the last governor's meeting, only he found an excuse to decline.

As lieutenant commanders of the Autobots and Decepticons, they had long been one of the toughest enemies of each other. But after briefly joining the Autobots and fighting alongside Jetfire over two decades ago, Starscream found Jetfire treat him differently. He knew the Autobot SIC loved joking but was serious in spark, and only "a hit by the thunderbolt" could make him fall in love with his former enemy at lightning speed. And Jetfire did not look for another date even after they were back into enemies shortly afterwards and unable to develop a relationship. Now that they were on the same side again, Starscream could see that Jetfire was less likely to give up than ever.

This time he could not decline the invitation with the same excuse.

"Jetfire, dating the acting commander of the Decepticons is a very bad idea for the leader of Cybertron. Your subordinates and other city-states may strongly oppose such a relationship, and this will not benefit your governance. My Decepticons and myself can also get into trouble." Starscream sighed. He did not need further explain. There would be less problem if he had been an ordinary Decepticon soldier, but it was another story now that he had threated the planet and even the galaxy in the Unicron Singularity incident. "Now the radiation of Unicron is detected, others will be more wary of the Decepticons. How many mechs do you think actually believe my answer to whether we will follow Megatron if he does resurrect? At this point, you and I … become more inappropriate."

"But Starscream is the only choice for Jetfire."

Starscream almost choked. He had talked rather frankly, but Jetfire turned out to be franker. Other mechs would stare their optics out on hearing this "confession". Lucky that they were in a military meeting room free of surveillance and equipped with advanced anti-eavesdrop devices.

"Indeed, it will take quite a while for the Decepticons to be accepted by most others. But that's what we are working for, isn't it? As for Unicron's radiation, yes." Jetfire sighed and went on, "but solidarity in a time of crisis could be a chance of getting others change their minds about the Decepticons. Even if it is him again ... as you have said, the Decepticons won't work for him anymore. Will you?"

Starscream certainly knew who the "he" is.

"No, we will not." He answered firmly.

"So may I still date you?" Jetfire asked. Towards the end of his words he could not hide his smiling tone.

Starscream felt a headache that seemed worse than when he was ostracized by other city-states. He stared at Jetfire's visor. This airfreighter was definitely smiling wide under the battlemask, he thought.

Yet he found this headache not that distasteful. He figured out that there must be a circuit fault somewhere in his central processor.

"Where shall we go?"

Jetfire booked a private dining room in the hotel closest to the headquarter. Most guests in this hotel were government officials, and the hotel was the only place for him to eat outside without needing to report to the security unit.

The restaurant deserved to be one in a top hotel: the food and high grade were very good, more delicate than anything Starscream had tasted since he went out of the Fire Dimension. Kaon had been very much short of living resources, and although he as the leader could enjoy much better food supplies if he wanted to, he did not care it that much, and he did not at all hope his subordinates found him seeking for such personal privilege.

"So that's the situation…"

Jetfire is a bit vexed to himself. Aren't they supposed to talk about something romantic? How does the date turn to his consulting to Starcream on problems in his governance? But Star seems happy to give him advices.

Starscream was certainly delighted to see such a development, it was he who deliberately steered their conversation to that topic, so as to avoid talking about anything "romantic". Jetfire just said that after over two years since the end of the war, the problem that merchants monopolizing scarce goods and bidding up their prices largely remained. Some city-state leaders were reluctant to help deal with the monopolies, claiming that this would cut their trade advantage.

"Anyone who does not cooperate in such a case is an accomplice." Starscream snorted. "Trade advantage? Who knows how much bribe they have taken from the profiteers. I understand it is unwise to force these governors to corporate. They have considerable autonomy, and destroying your relationship with them will bring more trouble to the rebuilding of the planet. Then let them see that the corrupt traffickers are their enemies after all. You know what I mean, and you can certainly think of several ways to carry it out."

At the dinner table Jetfire slid his battlemask back, Starscream saw his lips pressed together.

"You mean to provoke conflicts between the monopolists and the governors and induce the traffickers to turn against them, even to attack them? Regardless of whether our government can do this, if this causes violence incidents, it can hurt innocent civilians as well!"

"Far fewer than the civilians living in despair thanks to the monopolies on key commodities." Starscream sneered, "admit it, you reacted to my words so fast because you've thought of it, and maybe some of your mechs have advised you to do so. But you refused because of the so-called morality of the Autobots."

Jetfire palmed his forehead. Starscream was completely right, but still he argued. "Acting in such a disgraceful way, the prestige of the government --"

"Only governments that can solve problems have prestige." Starscream said bluntly. "Even by acting in this way – by the way, you call it a Decepticon way."

Jetfire shut his mouth, unable to admit or to deny. After millennia of war, "act in a Decepticon way" had become Autobot's idiom equivalent of banditry. The idiom worked in the current context, but of course he could not say it in front of Starscream.

"It is perfectly normal for the Decepticon acting commander to suggest an act in a Decepticon way." Starscream added with a faint smile. He slightly tilted his head, and even the folded wings on his back seemed to raise up a little together with the corners of his lips.

Jetfire looked at his slender frame and folding wings. The wings were so large and thin compared to his torso, and such curves and colors...

The airfreighter remembered butterfly wings. Not those of the metallic Cybertronian butterflies, but of the beautiful organic butterflies on Earth.

"What are you laughing for?"

Hearing Starscream's question, Jetfire realized that he himself also smiled, unconsciously.

"Nothing." He decided not to mention butterflies at the moment, lest Starscream got reminded of his weakened frame and felt unhappy. And the Decepticons did not like organic creatures.

He reached across the table and covered Starscream's servo holding the glass of high grade with his own: "I will carefully consider you advice."

Starscream put down the glass, but Jetfire did not loosen his grip. Rather, he tentatively held Starscream's servo into his larger palm. Starscream did not try to break away from him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Images from TFWiki)
> 
> Jetfire:  
> 
> 
> Hot Shot:  
> 
> 
> Scourge:  
> 
> 
> Crosswise:  
> 


End file.
